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Highland City Council: votes on zoning, trails, elections and local projects — April 15, 2024
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Summary
The Highland City Council on April 15 approved motions to deny a private PO‑zone text amendment in favor of a city‑led rewrite, approved a trail‑design change order and several construction and election items, and directed staff to return with revised park and field reservation policies.
What happened: The Highland City Council held a meeting April 15 that included multiple formal motions and votes on consent items, zoning direction, trail design work, municipal election administration and small public-works contracts. The council voted on minutes and consent approvals, directed staff about a long‑running Professional Office (PO) zone text‑amendment application, approved a design change order for the Mitchell Hollow Trail design, and approved bids and an interlocal agreement for the 2025 municipal election.
Why it matters: The votes affect local zoning direction that will shape future commercial development, authorize additional engineering work for a multi-million-dollar trail project and confirm the city’s working arrangement with Utah County for election administration. The Mitchell Hollow decisions also included a new design fee and prompted resident requests for fencing and neighborhood safety mitigations.
Key votes (at a glance):
- Consent: The council approved consent items 3B (approval of meeting minutes for April 1) and 3C (ratification of large purchases). Motion made by Council Member Kim Radella and seconded by Council Member Doug; electronic vote passed 5–0.
- Minutes (03/04/2024): The council approved amended minutes for March 4 after a requested wording correction to describe a speaker’s comment. Motion by Council Member Doug (mover), seconded by Council Member Scott (seconder). Passed 5–0.
- MPO/TAC appointments (3D): Council replaced named individuals with ex‑officio positions for Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) representation: appointing the mayor pro tem as the Highland City MPO board alternate (ex officio) and the city engineer as the Highland City TAC representative (ex officio). Motion by Council Member Kim Radella; second by Council Member Ron. Passed 5–0.
- PO zone text amendment (4A): The council accepted Planning Commission direction and denied a private applicant’s PO zone text‑amendment application (Patterson Homes) with instructions for staff to lead a city‑driven rewrite of the PO regulations. Motion by Council Member Doug (mover), second by Council Member Scott. Passed 5–0. Staff will now draft code options and bring them back for public and commission input.
- FastCast early‑voting option (4B): Council considered a Utah County proposal to let cities accept pre‑sealed ballots in a “fast cast” program during the early‑voting window. City staff recommended denying the option due to ballot security, staff training and perception issues. Council Member Kim moved to deny FastCast for Highland’s 2025 municipal elections; the motion passed 5–0 after a short procedural delay earlier in the meeting.
- Mitchell Hollow Trail design change order (4C): The council approved a design change order with Consort (design engineer) for the Mitchell Hollow Trail to add retaining‑wall design, geotechnical investigations, additional slope easements and a rapid‑flashing beacon at the Canal Boulevard crossing. The motion cited an additional design cost of $49,002.75 (mover: Council Member Kim; seconder: Council Member Ron). Staff said some construction savings will offset parts of the project; council also heard resident concerns and asked staff and the contractor to review fence impacts and property‑line mitigation. Motion passed 5–0.
- 10,050 drainage project (5A): Council awarded the drainage repair contract for a settled curb/curbing area to Baker Construction with a bid award not to exceed $57,272.60 (which includes a 10% contingency). Motion by Council Member Scott. Passed 5–0.
- Interlocal agreement for 2025 elections (5B): Council approved an interlocal agreement with Utah County Elections to assist with ballot processing, signature verification and to host a county vote center in Highland; the county estimated a cost of $2.75 per registered voter per election (county estimate based on 13,282 registered voters produced a not‑to‑exceed estimate for election services). Motion by Council Member Scott; second by Council Member Ron. Passed 5–0.
What was discussed but not decided formally: Council considered expanding park and athletic‑field reservation policy, use and fees (including Wimbledon South and new Highland Family Park fields and batting cages). Staff will return with policy options and market comparisons for rental fees, resident/nonresident pricing, and reservation processes. Public commenters requested fencing where the Mitchell Hollow Trail was moved closer to private yards; staff and the contractor said they will assess fence replacement/repair where construction affects existing private fences.
Quotations from the meeting (selected): - On the fundraising and overall cost for the Deer Creek project at the same meeting: “It’s a hundred million dollar price,” Provo River Water Users General Manager Jeff Budge said during the association’s presentation. - On the Mitchell Hollow Trail design change order, a resident said of the new alignment: “The changes that were made are now a safety hazard for my family,” asking the city to install matching fencing on the opposite side of the trail.
Votes summary (structured):
